The present invention pertains to a clip-type fastener for use in vehicles and one which is employed for mounting two vehicle parts together for normal use and yet, allows the parts to be separated if necessary.
There is a wide variety of fastening devices for attaching vehicle parts to one another and particularly plastic parts. In the vehicle environment for example, armrest and console bodies may include multiple panels or sections which are either welded, heat staked, or otherwise attached by fasteners. Fastening methods have included providing flanges with apertures formed therethrough in one of the parts and tabs which interlock into the apertures in the other part for holding the panels or parts together. Some of these fastening methods are permanent i.e. once the parts are attached to one another, they cannot be separated. Other methods such as screw-type fasteners allow disassembly for servicing when necessary. There has been widespread use of clips in the automotive environment which snap-fit within apertures in a vehicle panel for attachment of a panel to the underlying support structure. Also, some clip-type fasteners can receive conventional screw fasteners. U.S. Pat. No. 3,205,546 discloses a mounting clip which fastens within a panel and includes a flange to which a second fastener can be removably attached. U.S. Pat. No. 2,934,180 discloses a structural clement for joining adjacent panels of a partitioning structure. Although these clips provide some interconnection of panel shaped elements or removability of a clip-type device, neither provide the permanence available with the structure of the present invention and yet, allow separation of the parts for servicing.